The present invention relates generally to tractor attachments and relates more particularly to a novel tractor attachment and to a tractor attachment kit.
Tractors are powerful motor vehicles commonly used in, for example, agriculture, landscaping, and construction to perform a variety of moving, lifting and other tasks. To perform such tasks, various types of specialized attachments are typically coupled to the tractor. One such specialized tractor attachment is a bucket, the bucket being coupled to the front end of the tractor using an assembly commonly referred to as a loader boom. One common type of loader boom comprises a pair of arms and a pair of mounts. The rear end of each arm is pivotally mounted on the tractor, and a mount is pivotally mounted on the front end of each arm. The bucket, in turn, is typically mechanically coupled to the pair of mounts. Pivotal movement of the arms relative to the tractor is typically provided by a first hydraulic mechanism, and pivotal movement of the mounts relative to the arms is typically provided by a second hydraulic mechanism. In this manner, the bucket may be raised or lowered by operation of the first hydraulic mechanism, and the bucket may be angularly adjusted by operation of the second hydraulic mechanism.
Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 2, there are shown a front, perspective view and an enlarged, fragmentary, rear, perspective view of an exemplary conventional tractor assembly, the exemplary conventional tractor assembly being represented generally by reference numeral 11.
Tractor assembly 11, which is commercially available from Deere & Company (Moline, Ill.), comprises a tractor 13. Although tractor 13 is depicted in FIG. 1 as a four-wheeled motor vehicle, it is to be understood that tractor 13 need not be a four-wheeled motor vehicle and may, instead, comprise other types of vehicles.
Tractor assembly 11 additionally comprises a bucket 15.
Tractor assembly 11 further comprises a loader boom 17. Loader boom 17, which is also shown separately in FIG. 3(a), comprises a pair of arms 19-1 and 19-2 and a pair of mounts 21-1 and 21-2. Arms 19-1 and 19-2 are pivotally mounted at their respective rear ends on tractor 13. Pivotal movement of arms 19-1 and 19-2 relative to tractor 13 may be provided by a first hydraulic mechanism comprising one or more hydraulic cylinders 23. Mounts 21-1 and 21-2 are pivotally mounted on the front ends of arms 19-1 and 19-2, respectively. Pivotal movement of mounts 21-1 and 21-2 relative to arms 19-1 and 19-2 may be provided by a second hydraulic mechanism comprising one or more hydraulic cylinders 25. Bucket 15 is mechanically coupled to mounts 21-1 and 21-2. Such coupling is typically achieved by hooks on the rear of bucket 15 that matingly fit over the top ends 23-1 and 23-2 of mounts 21-1 and 21-2, respectively, and by pins extending from the rear of bucket 15 that are received in pin holes 27-1 and 27-2 in mounts 21-1 and 21-2, respectively (one such hook 29 and one such pin 31 being shown in FIG. 2).
The particulars of the loader boom, as well as the complementary structure on the bucket for attaching to the front end of the loader boom, tend to vary from one manufacturer to another. An example of an alternative conventional loader boom is shown in FIG. 3(b) and is represented generally by reference numeral 35. Loader boom 35 is similar in certain respects to loader boom 17 and comprises a pair of arms 37-1 and 37-2 that are adapted to be pivotally mounted at their respective rear ends on tractor 13. Pivotal movement of arms 37-1 and 37-2 relative to tractor 13 may be effected by a mechanism similar to that used to move arms 19-1 and 19-2 of loader boom 17. Loader boom 35 differs principally from loader boom 17 in that loader boom 35 does not include mounts 21-1 and 21-2 and, instead, includes a plurality of pins 39-1 through 39-4. Pins 39-1 and 39-2 are adapted to couple arms 37-1 and 37-2, respectively, to a bucket (not shown) by being inserted through plates 41-1 and 41-2 on arm 37-1 and through plates 41-3 and 41-4 on arm 37-2, respectively, as well as through corresponding plates (not shown) that are fixedly mounted on the bucket. Pins 39-3 and 39-4 are adapted to couple the movable ends 45-1 and 45-2 of hydraulic cylinders 43-1 and 43-2, respectively, to the bucket by being inserted through ends 45-1 and 45-2, as well as through the aforementioned plates that are fixedly mounted on the bucket. Fasteners 47-1 through 47-4 may be used to retain pins 39-1 through 39-4, respectively, in place.
As can be appreciated, there are situations in which it would be desirable to replace the functionality afforded by a bucket with the functionality afforded by another type of tractor attachment. As can also be appreciated, it would also be desirable to enable such a replacement to be made without requiring that changes be made to the loader boom. In other words, it would be desirable for the replacement attachment to be attachable to a conventional loader boom. Although some such replacement attachments exist, some of these replacement attachments suffer from certain shortcomings in terms of cost, weight, size, and/or variability in use.